One thing that is important to consider when you are in a “community property” state (at least in Louisiana) is that not only assets earned during the marriage shared are, but so are obligations incurred during the marriage as well. Like much of Louisiana law, this is obviously subject to some exceptions. Let’s look at the below example. For more questions beyond just this example ask a divorce attorney. New Orleans, Louisiana has numerous options to choose from.
Jerry and Liz are married with no children. They have been married four twenty three years. The same year that they were married, Jerry started up his own internet business. The business specialized in providing server space for startup internet companies. In order to get his business off the ground, Jerry needed to take out some loans for office space, supplies, and most importantly, computers. Jerry’s credit at the time was excellent, and he secured a loan for two hundred thousand dollars.
Jerry’s business flourished, and he became quite successful. As for his loan, it is still not paid off. For whatever reason, Jerry would always put off payment on the loan, and in year twenty three of his marriage he still owes about one hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
During the course of the marriage, Liz also took out a loan. Her loan was for quite a different purpose however: braces. Throughout her whole life, Liz had always had (she felt) very atrocious looking teeth. A few years after marrying Jerry, she decided to get braces to correct the problem. Despite Jerry’s offer to pay for the braces (he never really cared about Liz’s teeth, he thought they looked fine), Liz decided to take out a loan pay for them herself. Similarly to Jerry, in year twenty three of her marriage, Liz still owed money on the loan, but in the amount of thirty five hundred dollars.
Now let’s saw that Jerry and Liz decide to end their marriage, and speak with a divorce attorney in New Orleans, Louisiana found here. Each of them took out the loans on their own behalf, and did so during the course of the marriage. Does this mean that they will have to split the debts equally between by each’s respective divorce attorney?
One thing that Louisiana law looks at in this situation is the intent of the spouses when they took out the loan. Was the loan for the benefit of the spouse who took out the loan, was it for the benefit of the other spouse, or was it for the benefit of both of them? If the spouse who took out the loan did so purely for their own personal benefit, then it is likely going to be their sole responsibility to repay it. If the spouse who took out the loan did so only for the other spouse’s benefit, or for the benefit of both spouses, then it will likely be seen as a shared debt by a divorce attorney.
In our example, Jerry will have to argue that his loan for the business was not just for his own personal benefit.
This above is informational only, not legal advice. Will Beaumont. New Orleans. Beaumont Divorce, 3801 Canal St #207, New Orleans, LA, 70119 (504) 483-8008
Related posts:
- Divorce Attorney Concerns with Using Community Property for Separate Obligations in Louisiana
- Louisiana Divorce Attorney: Obligations are Shared Just like Property in Community Regimes
- Divorce Lawyer Examples: Using Separate and Community Property Together in Louisiana
- Community Obligations Explained by a Louisiana Divorce Attorney
- Divorce Attorney Thoughts Regarding Community Property in Louisiana
